


Not Your Average MMO

by Willow Mae (NelwynP)



Category: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon
Genre: Augmented Reality, Crystal Tokyo, Gen, MMORPGs, body control, computer simulation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 06:07:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29571498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NelwynP/pseuds/Willow%20Mae
Summary: In Crystal Tokyo, Mercury has whipped up a new battle simulation system to help the senshi and shitennou train and become a stronger team. Of course, there are always bugs to work out...





	Not Your Average MMO

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2008 Ficathon, themed "Group Fic". Previously titled "A Little Too Much D&D" but re-reading it I realize it really doesn't have much of anything to do with D&D, so I changed the title. 
> 
> It was incredibly hard to juggle so many characters and I didn't really have a clear idea of what I wanted to write in the first place. Also, this was probably my first attempt ever at writing action or fight scenes, so I'm quite aware of the shortfalls there. At the time, I was also heavily playing World of Warcraft, so the story was influenced by my experiences playing MMOs. 
> 
> I'm still kind of fond of the concept of this fic, even if it's not executed to my current standards. Hopefully it still make for an amusing read.

Venus adjusted her goggles and allowed her eyes to adjust to the gloom of the cave. Her skin itched beneath the electrodes positioned on her major muscle groups, but Mercury would probably have her head if she tried to scratch them and they fell off or malfunctioned so she willed the sensation away. Beside her, Jupiter and Kunzite stood similarly equipped, though at least Kunzite's armor hid the web of electrodes and wires fastened to his skin.

"I feel like some sort of weird robot from the 5th Element or something," Jupiter complained, rubbing the skin around an electrode on her arm without dislodging it.

"Mercury never had much fashion sense," Venus quipped back with a grin.

" _ I heard that _ ." Mercury's voice came over their coms. " _ Is everyone in position?" _

"Affirmative." Kunzite rumbled, choosing not to partake in the girl's idle banter. "Zoisite, you may initialize primary sequencing." This drew a snicker from Venus, but she said nothing.

_ "Copy that. Initializing primary sequencing."  _ Kunzite bounced a few times as though preparing for a jump then stepped forward and back. Still, he could not disguise the startled and slightly disturbed expression from crossing his face.  _ "Primary motor override check is green, WASD and joystick setup complete." _

_ "Confirmed,"  _ Mercury replied as Venus and Jupiter found themselves mimicking Kunzite's earlier movements.  _ "Well guys, are we ready to play?" _

"Yes, enough of your silly techno-babble already, let's give this test run everything we got." The trio jerked into action and set off into the cave.

Zoisite's technical wing of the Crystal Palace had expanded exponentially over the centuries as the world evolved. Monsters evolved too, and it kept everyone in the Palace on their toes trying to keep on top of the latest uprising. In the control room a half dozen monitors ran with various information, while Zoisite, Ami and Jadeite watched the three live-feed video transmissions coming from the trio in the cave. On adjacent screen detailed profiles of each fighter scrolled slowly, occasionally flickering as the electrodes on their bodies picked up new information and updated the archives.

"Isn't it cheating just a bit, to be doing the test-run yourself?" On his screen, Jupiter began to dance.

_ "Knock it off Jadeite or I swear to god _ — _ " _ she growled. On Mercury's screen, Kunzite joined the fun.

"Why would it be cheating? We need to know if there are any glitches and do a thorough system check." Zoisite typed in a command, and Venus began her own jig.

"Yeah but you and Ami created the program, so it's not like there are going to be any surprises along the way. All the puzzles, any encounters you've already got mapped out with a possible solution so isn't it cheating? You're taking away the spontaneity of it all."

_ "Is this why you added a /dance macro?" _ Kunzite shouted over the headset.  _ "For a bit more  _ spontaneity _?" _

"Oh I suppose he's right," Ami smothered a giggle. "We should probably just finish the test run quickly, if we actually want to utilize this as a training device."

"Hey Zoi check it out," Jadeite pointed to his screen where Jupiter scaled one of the rock walls, "it's like watching Lara Croft, only less polygons and more skirts!"

_ "It is incredibly disturbing for you to be checking out my friend through my own camera." _ Venus accused over the wire.  _ "Mako, I think you're beautiful but I have no desire to check out your ass." _

_ "And I in turn have no desire for you to be checking out my ass. Be careful with your power Jade, unless you're looking for payback when it's your turn in here." _

Dutifully, Venus began her ascent alongside Jupiter instead of below her.

The initial sectors of the cave went smoothly from that point in. There were a few issues where Kunzite couldn't jump as far as Mercury, Venus proved to be slightly less nimble than Zoi and Jadeite overused some of Jupiter's strength. Still, the program ran smoothly as each member of the team learned the strengths and weaknesses of the teammate in the simulation. Throughout the centuries there had been enough body-swapping and mind-control to merit a much deeper understanding of one another. Also, Zoisite had argued when applying for funding, it would be a great way to blow off some steam and to just do some interactive gaming. The other shittenou loved that idea particularly, and already there was a list of possible game re-writes in the future.

The team finally made it to the final chambers of the cave, having passed through a wide range of the typical game puzzles. While they had button-smashed their way through the occasional youma encounter previously in the game, the final boss battle would need, as expected, a bit more planning and finesse. The group paused just outside the sensor range and plotted. Zoisite had programmed a generic youma - faceless and vaguely human with an even spread of attributes - since there was no current scourge to obtain information from. At least three pockets of youma milled around, with the final Boss squatting directly in the middle of the cave with a few guards of its own.

"All right, we'll need to pick off the little guys first before the big one, so we don't get swarmed." Minako's eyes swept the cave swiftly, calculating the odds. Kunzite's eyes mimicked hers.

"It will depend on how tuned in to each other they are, and if they'll send out a call when they go down too. We might have to drag them a good distance away before we take them out."

"Isn't the point of this whole program to not do any of the planning ourselves?" Makoto interjected. "Shouldn't we let them figure out how they want to approach it?"

"This is a teamwork exercise, we should all figure it out together since we know our own strengths and weaknesses." Kunzite returned.

"That's true. But for now let's just see what they come up with? I'm sure they'll want to discuss it with us anyway before we go in.  _ Right guys? _ "

" _ Of course."  _ Jadeite assured them.  _ "Just give us a few minutes to figure things out up here."  _

Up in the control room, the trio began their own analysis of the situation.

"Jupiter's got a good Area of Effect with either the Oak Evolution or Coconut Cyclone." Zoicite scrolled through the various data on his screen.

"So does Venus with Crescent Beam."

"Crescent Beam has a higher aggro than either of Mako's attacks," Ami argued. "It's far more concentrated in terms of where the energy is being directed. I don't know if we aggro'ed them all at once if Kunzite could hold their attention long enough for the recharge. Am I right?"

_ "Yes, I could hold them for a little while but without taking the time to power up my physical aggro isn't nearly as high." _

_ "So what if Kunzite pulls a small group instead of me or Mako starting with an AoE to pull? Then I'll use my single attacks while Mako can spam with AoE." _

"That should work...Kunzite can hold the aggro while you two pick them off."

"I'll try to keep her focused on the same one that Kunzite's on so they fall quickly and he's not getting too much of a beating."

" _ Have at, we're all ready down here."  _ Like clockwork, the team slowly took down the generated monsters. Kunzite ran amidst a group, pulling up to 15 at a time would fall back to a secluded part of the cave well away from the rest, then would start a single beatdown. Venus concentrated her whip on whatever youma Kunzite was pounding while Jupiter hit the entire group over and over with Oak Evolution. The creatures fell within a matter of minutes. Soon it was only the boss and his guards left.

"So what, same strategy here?" Venus cracked her whip with a grin.

" _ Maybe not. All the guards will attack, and that should go as expected but with the boss in the mix he's going to be a hard hitter." _

"So let Venus aggro the boss and keep his occupied, her dexterity is high enough she should be able to miss most of his shots. Then Kunz and I can take care of the guards ourselves before helping take him down."

" _ It's worth a shot, shall we?" _

It was in fact better than just a shot. If the plan worked like clockwork before, it worked even smoother this time around. Venus dodged the attacks from the boss and kept him focused on her while the others took out the guard. Finally all three of them shot off their best attacks at once, making short work of the howling giant. The boss went down with a roar, the cave shaking as his gigantic body hit the ground. Jupiter and Kunzite exchanged a double high five while Venus did a victory dance amid the cheers.

"Way to rock it guys!" Mako cheered over the wire. "I'd say this whole thing was a success!"

" _ Even more than I expected! The details of the data we picked up is far more advanced than I had even hoped for!" _

"It was a bit weird fighting without control over my body..."

"But also very, very cool." Jupiter finished for her friend. "Not, of course, that it's something I'd ever want to happen with anyone but you guys."

" _ I call dibs next, after Zoi reconfigures the playground again. Ami, you joining me?" _

" _ Absolutely. I think it would be prudent for everyone to get their chance quickly so we can update our data as efficiently as possible." _

" _ Okay guys, I'm going to shut down the VR simulators, it'll take just a few minutes. Don't make any sudden moves while it's powering down, it might ... never mind. Just don't make any moves." _

The trio exchanged glances, Kunzite rolling his eyes but obediently they stilled their movements. The cave flickered and parts of the walls became transparent. Suddenly, the room went black, and all the screens in the control room shut off.

"What's going on Zoi?" Ami hissed, quickly tapping codes into her panel. "That shouldn't have happened, unless you messed with the program before we initiated?"

"No, I — No! It looks like there's something in the system. Like a virus or something. I'm running schematics now, it should find it in a few minutes."

" _ Looks like it found us first..."  _ Venus's voice drifted over the com. " _ Are you still getting video feed? Cause we could sure do to be running about now!" _

"No, we're still black up here," Ami's coding became slightly more frantic. "No wait, here it comes..."

On the screen, a creature twice as large as the previous boss was bearing down on the trio in the VR. It held no secure shape beyond a mass of wires that sizzled and seared as it rolled across the floor like an octopus out of the water. One of the wire tentacles whipped across Venus's bare arm and she let out a howl almost as unearthly as the youma's. That snapped everyone to attention, and the control room sent the group running.

"Are you getting these readings?" Jadeite's eyes flicked over his screen. "Holy shit this thing looks invincible!"

"It's just like any other virus — it's taken all the data we've extrapolated throughout the testing and merged it with itself to keep us from shutting it down. So aptly put, Jade. It's not going to be hurt much by those three."

"We've got to give it our best shot though." Ami's face was grim. "It could happen just like this in the field. In fact, I'd feel safe saying this  _ is _ the field now. So let's kick ass and get them out of there."

Shots were fired, with minimal damage. The creature moaned a bit and continued its assault on the group, forcing them to the defensive. That was never a position anyone liked being in.

" _ Jadeite, use Rolling Heart Vibration! NOW!"  _ he roared, frustration in his voice. " _ Mercury, I hope you're planning something up there instead of just running around." _

"I'm trying to figure out which hotkey I linked it to!" Jadeite snapped at the same time Ami responded icily with, "Forgive me if I'm more used to playing clerics instead of tanks."

"You're not a cleric sweetheart, you do way more damage than that."

"Well I'm certainly not DPS either."

"You are moreso than the rest of your team. Maybe more of a Ranger class."

_ "Guuuys!"  _ Jupiter's Coconut Cyclone smacked into the creature's torso.  _ "Can we have a little attention focused back down HERE please?" _

_ " _ We need either Neph or Rei down here as fast as they can," Zoisite instructed. "I can't be working on getting them out  _ and _ playing Jupiter at the same time."

" _ Can't you just disconnect me so I can run on my own?" _

Ami shook her head, brow furrowed in worry. "No, if he did that you'd be severed from the system and when we finally pull you out you'd still be stuck alone." 

" _ Well that's idiotic! What if there was some other malfuction, and we were just LOST in here? I can't believe you forgot safeguards for that!" _

"Yes, yes, can you chastise me later please? It was a simple oversight! Now I need to concentrate here or NONE of you will be able to get out!"

"Zoi, I can double-team for a while if you need me to, just until one of the others gets down here."

"You sure?"

"I can manage, just don't expect miracles. It's not so different from when I would team myself on Guild Wars or CoH. Hand me the keyboard." Jadeite cleared aside part of his desk while never taking his eyes off the screen. Zoisite switched his board to wireless and angled the monitor to face Jadeite.

"I'll try to fix this quick, buddy."

Time moved simultaneously at super speed and a snail's pace. Every attack seemed more ineffectual than the last, with Jupiter and Venus lagging noticeably as Jadeite tried to keep both of them functioning.

"NOW!" Zoisite punched his last few keystrokes with such force the desk shook. The screens all turned blue. He leapt from his seat ran to the door to the stasis chamber, which opened for him with a hiss. Inside, the three companions were shaking off the VR haze, no worse for wear other than a few sore muscles and bruised bones. Ami flung herself at her two friends, who encased her in a relieved hug. The men executed a much -manlier- version of the same.

"Next time, you make 'tars first to do your debugging." Jupiter scolded.

Zoisite heaved a sigh in acknowledgement. "I still like the concept though. We could do a lot with this place when we figure out what went wrong."

"Absolutely. But like the woman said, make us some 'toons first. Training sessions shouldn't be deadly." Kunzite gave him a reassuring pat on the back. "Still, an overall success. Congratulations."

"Oh, and let's not tell the Queen, shall we?"

With a chuckle, everyone agreed.


End file.
